your fave anti-hero

[Lain]

@Foxtrot94 and @LordOfDarkness

These days an Anti-hero refers to someone who fights villains for the greater good but is willing to do things that a hero won't do. These include killing criminals, sacrificing hostages to get the villian, etc etc. Examples of these characters are The Punisher, John Constantine and some versions of Batman just to name a few from comics.

 

[Foxtrot94]

I think we should go by the top definition on urbandictionary.

Anti-Hero
An anti-hero is a flawed hero, and therfore, much more intresting then the more traditional heros. They can be working on the side of good, but with a tradic flaw, or a horrible past, or for reasons that are selfish and not intirely "pure". They can also be working for the side of evil, but with hidden noble intentions, or other underlying complexities. These darker heros can be jerks, pathetic, hard, jaded, or mean. However, all anti-heros must have enought heroic qualitys, intentions, or strenth (physical including attracktivness or mental) to somehow gain the sympathy of the audiance. Mostly they are intriguing and can therefore can be very, very, SEXY especialy if you love bad boys (girls). Well known anti-heros include Batman (yay Batman Begins), Angle, Draco Malfoy, and well...Napoleon Dynamite (sorry not a hot example).

Eh, I think I shall stick to that one. Dunno if anyone will dig my picks though (which I'll have to think about), since I, unlike most people here apparently, am not really a comic reader nor am I a big film geek, so my sources are mostly limited to games and the movies I've seen.

 

[Chancey289]

In no particular order, some of my favorites are...

• Deadpool
• The Punisher
• Spawn
• Ghost Rider
• Judge Dredd
• Catwoman
• Black Cat
• Lobo
• John Constantine
• Max Rockatansky
• Jessica Jones

 

[TerrorA]

Well,

1. Guts from Berserk

2.Mugen from Samurai Champloo

3. Red Hood

 

[DragonMaster2010]

1. John Constantine
   
   
2. Batman
   
   
3. Dante (DmC)
   
   

These people for now

 

[xMobilemux]

 

[Meg]

In no particular order, some of my favorites are...

• Deadpool
• The Punisher
• Spawn
• Ghost Rider
• Judge Dredd
• Catwoman
• Black Cat
• Lobo
• John Constantine
• Max Rockatansky
• Jessica Jones

How could I have forgotten Deadpool?!

 

[cheezMcNASTY]

Guts wins.

 

[absolitude]

huh, the term is indeed tricky and DmC Dante apparently should be in my list.. is it okay for the mods if we discuss some things in regards to the anti-hero terms? this leads to discussing DMC3 vergil more.. based on the description from tehrugger, DMC3 vergil is still an anti-hero.. and funny thing is,

http://villains.wikia.com/wiki/Vergil_(Devil_May_Cry)

DmC
In this reboot, Vergil is more an anti-hero and sides with Dante to save mankind from Mundus, but was later revealed that he wanted to kill Mundus so he could take over the humans.

i'm really lost here..

i kinda forgot the things in DMC3, what was vergil's aim? power right? wanting power isn't bad, but i forgot what his intention for the power was.. he teamed up with dante against arkham, that's good, because that makes arkham/jester the pure antagonist and leaves vergil in the grey area

 

[Sparda's Rebellion]

Yagami Light

Vergil

Deadpool

 

[Chancey289]

Seriously, Vergil is NOT an anti-hero.

And Light is arguable, I mean, he starts out with, well, somewhat noble intentions, but he becomes a straight up villain killing everyone who gets in his way. Innocent or not.

Dexter Morgan is more of an anti-hero than Light, even though he's also a serial killer, his code still restricted him from killing innocents no matter what.

 

[Sparda's Rebellion]

Seriously, Vergil is NOT an anti-hero.

And Light is arguable, I mean, he starts out with, well, somewhat noble intentions, but he becomes a straight up villain killing everyone who gets in his way. Innocent or not.

Dexter Morgan is more of an anti-hero than Light, even though he's also a serial killer, his code still restricted him from killing innocents no matter what.

Light kills innocents that he thinks are getting in the way of him killing bad guys, Light never thinks he's doing anything evil and would consider himself a good guy and so do all of his followers. If that's not an anti hero then I'm not sure I even know what an anti hero is anymore.

 

[Chancey289]

Light kills innocents that he thinks are getting in the way of him killing bad guys, Light never thinks he's doing anything evil and would consider himself a good guy and so do all of his followers. If that's not an anti hero then I'm not sure I even know what an anti hero is anymore.

Light thinks that way because face it, he's an arrogant, conceited, narcissist with a god complex.

Also quite frankly, kind of an asshole.

 

[Sparda's Rebellion]

Light thinks that way because face it, he's an arrogant, conceited, narcissist with a god complex.

Also quite frankly, kind of an asshole.

So why isn't he an anti hero?

 

[LordOfDarkness]

DmC Vergil: but was later revealed that he wanted to kill Mundus so he could take over the humans.

That's not exactly it, though. Vergil believed humans were weak, and therefore not strong enough to protect themselves. He essentially viewed himself, and his brother, as the chosen ones to rule. Dante didn't agree with Vergil's proposal, or the idea that humans were weak. This is what split them apart in the end. It wasn't that Vergil was potentially planning to do anything bad, just the fact that he felt the need to take over Mundus' previous role of controlling humanity, something that Dante had helped Vergil put an end to so that humanity could be "freed".

 

[Chancey289]

So why isn't he an anti hero?

Well, like I said, he starts going kill crazy. I mean, I don't think anyone walks away from Death Note thinking Light's a good guy. He's really not.

Picking up that Death Note was the worst thing that could have ever happened to him because I imagine he would have had a bright future as a detective, possibly working alongside someone like L as peers instead of enemies. But that power pretty much corrupted him, and he has a very warped sense of justice.

Which is why I say it's arguable really.

 

[absolitude]

That's not exactly it, though. Vergil believed humans were weak, and therefore not strong enough to protect themselves. He essentially viewed himself, and his brother, as the chosen ones to rule. Dante didn't agree with Vergil's proposal, or the idea that humans were weak. This is what split them apart in the end. It wasn't that Vergil was potentially planning to do anything bad, just the fact that he felt the need to take over Mundus' previous role of controlling humanity, something that Dante had helped Vergil put an end to so that humanity could be "freed".

you're right, so, both of them in DmC were initially the anti-hero type, dante went full hero after that i assume, and vergil full evil..

and wow.. didn't expect anti-hero could be this confusing.. lol

 

[Keaton]

So why isn't he an anti hero?

Because he's the villian. The anti-hero in Death Note would more likely be Near, he is not the hero of the series, instead he is acting beyond his own motivations to defeat the villian. Least, that's my perspective.

One of my fave Anti-Hero's as strange as it may sound, is Shadow the Hedgehog.
Not the villian and not the hero. Shadow has a set motivation and set moral code to act by and furthermore has no desire to 'save' the hero of the series, however still does it within his own code.

Spoiler

 

[absolitude]

Because he's the villian. The anti-hero in Death Note would more likely be Near, he is not the hero of the series, instead he is acting beyond his own motivations to defeat the villian. Least, that's my perspective.

One of my fave Anti-Hero's as strange as it may sound, is Shadow the Hedgehog.
Not the villian and not the hero. Shadow has a set motivation and set moral code to act by and furthermore has no desire to 'save' the hero of the series, however still does it within his own code.

Spoiler

there, this is how i always see anti-hero the whole time, someone who isn't good nor bad, he has his own view and principle, and to contrast that, there will always be the full villain type in that media, so we have the hero, the villain and the character who's minding his own business with his own purpose..

boy, was it not as simple as that

 

[LordOfDarkness]

@absolitude: The way that I see it is a character can go from hero/villain/anti-hero /anti-villain in a matter of seconds, and all it really depends on is their actions within a current situation.

This can make it tricky to understand where on the scale of good and evil do some characters fit.

You get the impression that DmC Vergil is doing the right thing, but he's doing it more for himself, and for his own intentions. That's why up until the end he cares about his brother, is by his side, and even saves him from death. However, as soon as he's aware that Dante wants no part in his plan, it's "you're either with me, or against me". Not to mention that Vergil probably wouldn't bother to save Kat if it came to it, whereas Dante would. This clearly shows Vergil's true nature of selfishness, and ruling the humans wouldn't be about protecting them as much as appearing superior to them. I mean, Kat regarded him as a close friend, and Vergil practically insults her by calling her (alongside the rest of humanity) weak.